Bold, provocative, and hopeful…
Passi combines historical perspective, vivid allegory, and an urgent tone to chart the nation’s current turmoil and the possibilities for renewal in his compelling work. “The impossible had happened,” opening the book, Passi writes of the 2016 election, “and now this new President, with his Barnum and Bailey bluster, was in charge of all the levers of power in the American Oz.” The metaphor of Oz lingers like smoke through the chapters, capturing how spectacle and distraction have blinded citizens to the forces hollowing out their democracy.
Passi stitches history into the present, showing how every national crisis (the Revolution, the Civil War, the Great Depression) forced Americans to choose between democracy and the grip of an elite. “We either care enough about the nation and its people to stop the hollowing out of its human, democratic heart,” he warns, “or we’re willing to let it be replaced by a cold, inhuman mechanism that values wealth and power over human concerns.” The book’s historical sweep is grounding and unsettling, a reminder of lessons repeatedly ignored.
Passi skillfully blends metaphor with urgency. Neoliberalism becomes a spell, an illusion that lulls citizens into complacency while an economic aristocracy pulls the strings. At one point, a voice in the book speaks to the people: “You can take back control of your lives and reclaim your resources. What seemed to be reality was just an illusion, and not only an illusion but a scam.” This prophetic challenge threads through the narrative, urging readers to break free. The tone is never partisan; it’s human. Passi criticizes Democrats for clinging to outdated maps and Republicans for embracing authoritarian tools, but the real indictment is aimed at complacency. Democracy, he reminds us, does not run on autopilot; it runs on the courage of its citizens. “Do you simply stay stuck in the old spell,” he asks, “or do you choose an alternative?”
Even as he lays out a dystopian trajectory, Passi refuses to let despair win. The final chapters turn toward solutions: grassroots movements, solidarity, and what he calls a “Citizen Toolkit” to dismantle division and dependency. The train metaphor, with two tracks diverging — one toward dystopia, the other toward renewal — drives the book to its close with warning and hope. “Choose your train,” he writes. “Choose your future.” The book goes beyond analysis to become a call to arms. It urges readers to peer behind the curtain, confront the forces manipulating their future, and recognize that democracy, though bruised, remains theirs to defend. An eye-opener
Pub date June 10, 2025
Publisher Perspectives-Bob Passi
ISBN 979-8999045300
Length 195 pages
Price $16.99 (USD) Paperback, $5.99 Kindle edition